Polytheism Can Create Conflict

In the chapter of the Moran Themes textbook titled Ancient Religion, Kirsch explains that a completely polytheistic world could result less violence and extremism than in a monotheistic world. This is because monotheists who believe that their supreme being holds the absolute truth cannot co-exist with individuals who believe otherwise.  This often leads to violent clashes. Kirsch argues that a polytheistic world would allow individuals to be more tolerant of others’ belief systems.  However, I would argue that a polytheistic world could cause just as many conflicts as a world dominated by monotheism.

The first reason that a polytheistic world would not necessarily reduce conflicts is that even though individuals may be more tolerant of others’ gods, disagreements on principles of belief could still arise.  For example, even though individuals might accept the existence of each other’s gods, the practices derived from one god may contradict those of another god.  Polytheistic tolerance simply means that an individual can live with the notion that there are other gods in addition to the ones he or she worships.   This does not necessarily mean that an individual’s beliefs will not contradict another’s. 

The second reason that polytheism may bring as much conflict as monotheism is because polytheism does not provide a dominant moral code for everyone to follow. Polytheism does not require individuals to follow a common moral code or to share similar values.  In this type of society, there is no one absolute truth that states which laws must be followed and what is good and what is evil.  The absence of this means that everyone can have their own moral code, and that value systems can vary widely across society.  Because there is no one supreme power that everyone is supposed to believe in, it can lead to a world of conflict.

One of the main objectives of monotheistic religions is to enforce a code of law supported by a supreme being that knows the absolutely truth.  Because followers of monotheistic religions are expected to believe in this supreme power, they are expected to follow its laws. However, a polytheistic society means that individuals can follow an array of value systems.  If one person believes that murder is acceptable, and another person believes that it is not, there is no one religious code to decide who is right.  This can lead to chaos and possibly increased conflict.